English

In Chung Cheng High School (Main), we are committed to nurture confident and articulate users of the English Language who will be life-long, independent learners. We believe that the articulate Chung Cheng student who is global in his/her outlook will be able to use the English Language effectively within and beyond the shores of Singapore. Learning to appreciate language through literature in Chung Cheng also provides opportunities for students to explore and understand universal global issues which focus on human conditions and values and the at the same time understand the subtleties and creative use of the English Language in literary texts.

We endeavour to develop an academic curriculum that is skills-based and developmental, with enthusiastic students taking ownership of their learning.

The English Language Curriculum aims to enable students to:

listen, read and write critically and independently.

communicate with accuracy and efficiency for different purposes, audiences, contexts and cultures.

view and critically analyse a wide range of texts in different forms and styles.

appreciate the subtleties of language at the literal, inferential and evaluative levels.

use internationally acceptable English to understand and respond to global issues.

support and scaffold pupils’ overarching understanding of literary concepts, ideas, and arguments presented on literary texts.

enable pupils to link the relevance of universal and timeless literary texts to 21st century concerns.

nurture an interest in the reading of literary texts.

The Five Minds approach underpins the English Language and Literature in English curriculum at Chung Cheng High School (Main):

Disciplined Mind

A student of English Language & Literature should be a life-long and independent learner who is confident and articulate in the use of Standard English.

Synthesising Mind

In the learning of the various components of English Language & Literature, a student should be able to integrate receptive and productive skills as well as the knowledge about the language for effective communication.

Creating Mind

Guided by an awareness of purpose, audience, context and culture in which communication takes place, a student should creatively and appropriately represent ideas for personal, academic and functional purposes.

Respectful Mind

In order to improve one’s mastery of English Language & Literature, a student should respect and embrace different perspectives.

Ethical Mind

To have an enriching and meaningful learning experience in English Language & Literature, a student should set by example to uphold moral standards by giving credit where it is due.

English Language

Lessons are student centric with a gradual introduction of blended flipped classrooms which will commence in 2016.

The spiral progression curriculum underpins the design of lessons in each level. As students progress to the next level, layers of complexity are introduced. By the end of Secondary 4, students would have confidently mastered the skills required in the O Level English Language Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Regular formative and summative assessments will be administered to students so timely feedback allows students to take cognizance of their own strengths and weaknesses in their learning.

Literature in English

Lower and upper secondary students will be exposed to the three genres which will constitute the curricula: poetry, prose and drama. The texts enable students to develop a deeper understanding of the human condition.

The pedagogical processes during the delivery of the curricula will involve the students in rigorous analysis on human nature, characterization, relationships, universal themes linked to the human condition and the authorial intent of the use of language within the confines of selected literary texts.

Class discussions will focus the use of critical thinking for drawing inferences, articulating precise points of view and crafting coherent arguments with appropriate textual evidence in response to literary texts. Through the use of the discussion-based inquiry approach, students’ critical and creative thinking abilities can be reinforced.

The four-year Programme for Literature in English will offer a skills-based, curriculum which will spiral upwards progressively and which will be paced to provide increasing challenge to students. The age-appropriate thematic focus for each academic year will also be varied.